


I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues

by MacBeth13



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-17
Updated: 2013-11-17
Packaged: 2018-01-01 19:28:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1047706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MacBeth13/pseuds/MacBeth13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Song-fic to the titular tune. The Doctor, River and the TARDIS work through what it means to have the blues, the ups and the downs of their unusual relationship. Takes place for the Doctor before TATM but after The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe, and is in the time frame when he still likes to drop by for visits and occasional adventures.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this one a long time ago, started before the seventh season began, hit a block because of Angels Take Manhattan, then finished it but never had the guts to type it up and post it until now. Nervous about writing NC-17 for the Doctor so hopefully if you read this you will enjoy all of the story, let me know what you think. ;)
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine, or else I'd be really old...hehe. Congrats to Doctor Who for making 50 years of adventures!

 

 

 

_Don’t wish it away,_

_Don’t look at it like its forever._

 

They had developed a sort of routine at this point. He would arrive with a flourish, pomp and circumstance, and she would run away with him with zeal and joie de vivre. They would have one of their adventures and when he would return her to Stormcage a gloom would settle over them both.  Now it was one of those times.  They had both just helped a cruise liner over-run with Sontarans.  A serious situation that they couldn’t help but find amusement in after the fact when it was learned that the cruise was headed for a planet-wide fashion exposition.  The Sontaran’s reasons for attacking the cruise liner were dubious at best. Either way they had stopped the Sontarans and the cruise-liner had gone on it’s way. River couldn’t resist pointing out that if the Sontarans wanted to go to the fashion show they could have just bought tickets. The Doctor and River had been laughing and cheerful right until the moment the TARDIS landed at Stormcage.  Truth be told the Doctor was hoping his old ship would land them somewhere else, a new adventure, as she sometimes did. But she didn’t this time.  This time she landed inside the corridor of Stormcage just outside of River’s cell, instruments humming softly as River lovingly patted the console in an adieu. 

 “Well, here we are again,” the Doctor said with a false sense of cheer and a spin on his heel that he hoped would be enough to convince River he didn’t feel quite so miserable.

 “Yes, here we are again, Doctor,” River smiled at him.  The smile didn’t reach her eyes and she studied him.  He knew from her penetrating gaze that she didn’t buy his chipper outlook any more than he did.

 “Oh, River,” he said with a depressed sigh, pulling her close to him.  “I wish we didn’t have to do this, I wish you didn’t have to stay here.”  He kissed the crown of her head.

 “But I do,” she hugged him back then whispered very quietly in his ear, “it’s the only way to keep them thinking you died at Lake Silencio, my love. It’s just…it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make for you, I just hate the times when we have to say goodbye.”

 “No, not goodbye, River. It’s not a forever goodbye.  They’re just ‘farewell for nows’,” he said with a crooked smile as his thumb stroked her cheek and he gazed upon her.

 

_Between you and me,_

_I could honestly say_

_That things can only get better._

 

 It was a strange way to live a married life but it was them, it was the way it needed to be because, like she mentioned, they would know he was alive if they didn’t keep up the façade…he shuddered internally at the thought of what would happen then.  No, the alternative to this way of living would be a much worse existence.  Still, this situation, as River, sounding very much like her mother, had once rather fittingly put it, sucked.

 “You were right though,” he mumbled into her shoulder as they stood there in their embrace, neither one of them wanting to let go.

 “I know, but what about specifically this time?” she asked with blasé sass.

 “This sucks.”

 “I thought you were supposed to be convincing me to cheer up?” she responded while stroking the hair at the back of his head where it met his neck.  He loved when she did that, it always sent good tingles down his spine.

 “Right. Yes. Okay. Plus side, after everything we’ve been through, all the bad stuff, then there’s a whole lot of space to add to our pile of good things.”

 “We’ve had the worst the Universe could throw at us, and so things can only get better, that sort of thing?” she laughed sardonically knowing that even he didn’t believe that, not for a second.  He was never so naïve but it was a good fantasy.

 “What?  It’s a good thought,” he laughed lightly at his own absurdness.

 “Yes, it is a good thought.  Not very based in reality, mind, but nice just the same, Sweetie.”

 “Well, we’ll probably never be at the end of the Universe again, we’ve done that, what, twice now?”

 “Hmmm,” she agreed with a low hum, “each time ending in a wedding.”

 “Huh.  Funny, never thought of it like that before,” he stood up straighter to scratch his chin, a tick of his she was already accustomed to and fond of.

 

  _And while I’m away_

_Dust out the demons inside_

 

 “Anyway, back to my thought about better, it should be a reality,” he said matter-of-factly, so convincing she raised an eyebrow at him as if to question his sanity, something she did often anyway.  “I mean when I’m away, when we’re apart, it’s okay to feel sad, right?” it sounded rhetorical but she nodded anyway.  “Right, so while I’m away let it out of your system, I guess, let all of the sadness and badness out and let it go so that when I return it will be all goodness and smiles and better, as it were, sort of speak.”

 “Isn’t that what we’ve been doing?”

 “In a way, yes, but we always look upon parting as such a tragic thing, and really we shouldn’t.  It’s okay to have time apart, maybe even a good thing.”

 “Good how?”

 “Don’t know. Sounded good though, for argument’s sake,” he gave her a lopsided grin.  “Seriously, though, it can’t be good all the time, there has to be balance,” she scoffed at that.  “Yes, I know, we’ve had enough bad, already covered that.  What I mean is, we’ve had all that and sometimes it’s okay to run and have joy but it’s not okay to never think about the other stuff and repress it, pretend it doesn’t exist because when it does come back to the surface it will haunt you worse, trust me.”

 “Okay,” she said slowly, trying to take in his ramblings, “so what you’re saying is that while we’re apart that’s the time I should be facing my demons?”

 “Uh,” he scratched his head, ruffling his hair.

 “The true definition of being a prisoner, Sweetie.  That’s all we can do, all there is to do here is to think, to ruminate. My past haunts me everyday here, it’s my penance though.”

 “Sorry, River,” he kissed her forehead.

 “Not your fault.”

 “Yes it is.  You said so once.  I got too big, too noisy, brought this upon us.”

 “I was angry, didn’t mean it.”

 “You meant every word, dear, and I accepted.  I just wish…I wish you didn’t have to go through this because of me.”

 “I feel like we’re talking in circles tonight.  This is my sacrifice to make, like I said.  I’m willing to make it if it means you live.”

 

  _And it won’t be long,_

_Before you and me run_

_To the place in our hearts_

_Where we hide._

 

 “Well then, I’ll try to make our next trip extra special,” he said in that tone of voice that always gave her pleasurable shivers.

 “Oh?”

 “Maybe some place exotic,” he suggested.

 “Mmm, maybe, although for you, honey, exotic tends to mean that the local inhabitants try to eat us.”

 “Fair point,” he admitted with a tip to his head.  “Okay, uh, how about Victorian London, we could go see a play, I know you love the dresses.”

 “Sounds…peaceful,” she said pondering it.

 “Or…” he said with a wicked gleam in his eye, “we could always set the dials at random and let the old girl surprise us.”

 “Ooh, haven’t done that in a while,” she returned his childlike enthusiasm.

 “Then it’s a date,” he told her then kissed her sweetly, almost chastely. 

 “Oh, you can do better than that,” she teased.  And he did do better, much better.  He kissed her ardently, his arms pulling her so close to him it was as if he were trying to meld their souls together.

 How did Shakespeare put it, ‘parting is such sweet sorrow’?  He now knew how that felt.  His hearts ached with it, the pain of saying goodbye, but they would see each other again.  They would take that adventure they planned and it would be special, he vowed to himself as his kisses turned less heated and more tender.  All their times together were special because he knew their time was limited, a rarity for the Timelord able to travel time and space itself.  He’d known from the first day he met her.  Mustn’t think about that.  No, he wouldn’t he thought, determinedly trying to push the thought away, hoping she wouldn’t see the moisture gathered in his eyes.

 The long kiss ended, and, of course, she did notice, but thankfully did not question him.  She looked just as sad as he felt on the inside but then she managed her expression, forcing herself to look outwardly happy, his brave River.

 “Until next time, Sweetie,” she said breathily and with a smile that was all allure.

 “There’s my girl,” he smiled back.  “Until next time, dear,” he said to her then kissed her on the cheek.

 He forced his feet to carry him to the TARDIS, his smile faded as soon as he closed the door behind him.

 

  _And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._

_Time on my hands could be time spent with you._

_Laughing like children, living like lovers,_

_Rolling like thunder under the covers._

_And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._

 

 The Doctor did what he usually did, he kept busy, he travelled, answered a few distress calls, saved a few lives and went on his way.  The days passed quickly when he was busy but when he wasn’t, when he was alone, the minutes and hours seemed to pass interminably.  He was sitting in his sling under the main platform of the TARDIS tinkering with the wiring, fixing and maintaining and trying to find the source of the noise that just wasn’t quite right. In fact he was finished with that task but the noise was still there.  He knew it had nothing at all to do with the wiring or parts.  That low humming moan his TARDIS was making reflected the way he felt.

 “I know old girl, I miss her too,” he told his ship as he rested his head on the side-band of the sling.  He sighed after a moment then got up and trudged up to the main platform, setting coordinates and flying his beloved ship to a new place.  They arrived at the destination he chose then he walked to the doors.  He sat in the open doorway, feet seemingly dangling in open space.  He looked upon the nearby nebula.  He had brought River here a few times before.  She had loved the view.  They had spent quite a lot of time sitting in the doorway, drinking tea and talking, asking each other questions and answering them.

 He didn’t like feeling so glum like this. So…so…what was the word humans used? He looked at his TARDIS’ door then remembered, that was it, blue.  Humans called feeling like this was having a case of the blues.  Blue was a happy colour, always had been to him, but humans associated blue with sad.  Why was that?  Blue things were happy things in his life.  His beloved TARDIS was blue, the bluest blue ever.  His old sonic screwdriver glowed blue.  Earth’s sky and sea looked blue.  The colour of Amy and Rory’s front door was blue, a fitting colour to represent the face of the home of his two best friends, River‘s parents. Blue was the colour of the jeans and jacket River wore when they met up in Utah, both times, and he really liked what those blue jeans did for her curves.  She once wore a blue velvet gown for him when they went for a trip to Hollywood in 1950.  Blue was the colour of his bowtie, the one he was wearing when he married River atop the pyramid.  River’s green eyes were mixed with flecks of blue and gold, like the nebula outside.  Sometimes the blue in her eyes would seem to smoulder prominently darkening the green making her eyes come alight with passion.  He sighed heavily.  Blue was a reminder of everything he held dear, really.  At the moment everything blue he could think of reminded him of River.  Everything about her was turning up blue.  He guessed that’s what the humans meant.  If it was then he did have a case of the blues.

 There were so many things he’d rather be doing than sitting here idly, alone.  He should be spending his time with River.  They should be on adventures, they should be exploring and helping and wandering and wondering and running and laughing and…oh so many things.  Their days should be all that and their nights, he sighed with wistful longing, their nights should be love and passion and all the best that River brought out in him, the things she reminded him of that he had long ago suppressed. So long ago that he felt untried and everything felt new again. His wife had reintroduced him to a number of things and had even taught him some new things.

 

  _Just stare into space_

_Picture my face in your hands._

 

 He looked back out at the nebula, out to space and wondered what she was doing now.  He wanted her to be here with him.  He could imagine her here by his side; imagine her soft hands caressing his face, her nimble fingers running through his hair.  Did she imagine that too?  Did River ever sit and imagine those things happening, stare at something and nothing all at the same time because what occupies that space was not what was seen, the mind’s imaginings replacing reality?  Picturing what one wanted to see rather than what was.  Did she ever imagine him there with her? Did she see his face as clearly as he saw hers?

 

  _Live for each second_

_Without hesitation,_

_And never forget I’m your man._

 

 He shook his head.  Maybe. River was always one to live in the moment, would she really dwell on it?  She said she did, and maybe it was true.  A part of him wanted it to be but the other part of him hoped she was living every moment to the fullest like she did when he was around.  River Song, notorious for escaping repeatedly from the ‘inescapable prison’.  She had a penchant for trouble and loved the excitement life brought her.  She was always so exuberant and jumped head first into anything.  He loved that about her, even if it was her tragic flaw.  She had her adventures with him; she had some of her own.  She’d break free of Stormcage when she got restless and go off gallivanting on her own, but she always came back.  More often than not she got him caught up in whatever scheme she was involved in and he would pretend to be cross but he wasn’t usually.  He loved that she still had such unbridled passion and joy and thrill for the chase, for the quest, for simply seeing what there was to see.  And it didn’t matter when in her timeline he found her as long as she was River she was his.  

 

  _Wait on me, girl,_

_And cry in the night if it helps._

_But more than ever,_

_I simply love you_

_More than I love_

_Life itself._

 

 He used to mourn for her heart, thinking it was a sad thing to have yet another give their heart to him, another one ruined because of him.  He would see how she was when they parted, the sadness in her eyes.  Much like they did when they last parted but now he knew just how deep that pain ran.  Even though she was loathe to show it in front of him he was sure that tears fell when he was gone, perhaps when she was alone at night hoping he would be there and he wasn’t.  It was one way to get through feeling like this, he thought.  Did it help? 

 He had stopped mourning for her heart a long time ago, when he realized that she had his.  Oh, it wasn’t like they show in all of those cheesy movies Amy was so fond of; there was no cupid’s arrow or a bolt of lightning or fireworks or the like. It was more like the more he ran from love the more it tried to find him and work its way in, like his hearts weren’t listening to his head and they’d grown accustomed to River after repeated exposure and now they needed to be near her or it caused an aching in his chest.  He needed to hear her laughter and see her smile, smell her shampoo and taste her lips, the feel of her skin against his.  How was he ever going to let her go?

 He sniffed, surprised to find he was crying.  How humany-wumany of him.  He wiped away the moisture from his face in a frustrated manner.  This wasn’t normal behaviour for him, but it had become the new normal in this body, this face.  He rubbed at his chest slowly, trying to dull the ache that wasn’t really there but it was.  The TARDIS hummed low and softly behind him, around him.

 How many times had he almost died, almost really died, since he had met River?  And yet he knew he’d allow it to happen if it meant saving her.  What did that mean?

 He hopped up suddenly, clapping his hands and rubbing them together quickly, shaking himself free of his melancholy.  “Right. Okay,” he said as he hastily closed the doors and took the stairs two at a time.  “What d’you say, old girl, have we stayed away and waited long enough?” he asked the TARDIS as he punched in the coordinates for Stormcage.  In reply the TARDIS moved her own lever and sent them on their way.  Just as the Doctor had a connection with the TARDIS River had a connection with her as well, though their relationship was different, River being a child of the TARDIS, conceived mid-flight in the time vortex.  Still there was a connection between all three of them, and what a strange, adventurous, loving, crazy, spacey-wacey triangle of a relationship it was.  They were always amazing.

 

  _And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._

_Time on my hands could be time spent with you,_

_Laughing like children, living like lovers,_

_Rolling like thunder under the covers._

_And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._  

 

 It was time to end this bout of the blues. Time to go back to River. Time to see and do and feel all the cheerful feelings.  Let blue be a happy colour again, add to the pile of good things.  Time to laugh and run and love and do all the many things.  He felt his pulse quicken in anticipation.  The TARDIS herself seemed excited; her noises back to normal, that other unidentified sad noise was gone.  He checked the chronometer on the console to find it was night-time, very early really, just as they were landing inside Stormcage.   He was also careful to make sure he was visiting the right River, the one he had left a few weeks ago.  He was expecting to hear the alarms when he landed but was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by silent hallways when he opened the TARDIS doors.  Sometimes there were alarms, sometimes when he landed there weren’t.  He was beginning to think it was because the guards were getting used to River’s comings and goings, or maybe it was something else entirely.  He looked up and down the corridor and saw no one running toward him with rifles so that was good.  He took a deep breath before fully exiting the TARDIS and heading for River’s cell.

 

  _Wait on me, girl,_

_And cry in the night if it helps_

_But more than ever_

_I simply love you more than I love life itself._  

 

River was facedown on her cot.  The Doctor thought that perhaps she was asleep and hadn’t heard the TARDIS materialize, he had parked quite a ways down the corridor after all.  He pulled out his sonic screwdriver from his pocket and unlocked the cell door, moving the heavy metal door aside as quietly as possible.  He sat on the edge of the bunk and ran his long fingers through her wild curls.

 “River,”

 “Hmm?”

 River picked her head up and looked at him.  Just having been woken up she looked at him with groggy interest, not fully aware of her surroundings. He wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep but he guessed she must have cried herself to sleep based on the puffiness of her eyes and redness to them.

 “What time is it?” she asked as she rolled herself over and sat up.

 “About two in the morning here,” he said.  “Sorry to wake you.”

 “S’all right, haven’t been asleep that long anyway,” she said rubbing her eyes, her actions confirming his suspicions. 

 “So, been up to anything new while I was away?”

 “Went on an archaeological expedition in old Siluria.  The dinosaurs were magnificent, went riding on one.”

 “Ooh, that sounds like fun!  I should try that sometime!”

 “You should,” River said with a sleepy grin, “you’d love it, lovely creatures.”

 “Did you see me at all?” he knew she’d understand what he was asking, if she’d seen other versions of him.

 “No,” she answered sadly.

 “Well I’m here now,” he said rubbing the back of his knuckles gently across her cheek.

 “Yes, you are,” she smiled a sultry Cheshire cat grin.  She stretched feline-like too then hopped up from the bunk.  “Shall we?” she asked holding out her hand.

 

  _And I guess that’s why they call it the blues_

_Time on my hands could be time spent with you_

_Laughing like children, living like lovers_

_Rolling like thunder under the covers_

_And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._

 He jumped up from her bed and clasped her proffered hand in his and told her, “Next stop anywhere,” then kissed her on the cheek before they both giggled and took off for the TARDIS down the corridor at a run.  Apparently someone was paying attention because as soon as their running feet pounded the floor of the hallway the alarms sounded and lights flashed.  They reached the TARDIS breathless and happy and closed the doors just as the guards came charging down the corridor.  They both began pressing buttons and throwing levers setting the TARDIS in motion and the ship thrummed happily under their hands.

 “Anywhere you want to take us, old girl, you know where we need to be,” the Doctor told his beloved ship setting their destination to random.  River let him leave the brakes on because she knew he loved the sound so much, even if it did make her want to grind her teeth sometimes.  The TARDIS brought them to Cardiff which outwardly would seem normal and uneventful but things in Cardiff rarely stayed that way.

 “Wonder why she brought us here?” River pondered.

 “No idea, anyway they have good chips.”

 “Mmm, they do.”

 “We could go get some.”

 “Later, dear,” she said leaning against the console seductively.

 “Later?” he asked, his voice rising into a higher octave.

 “Come here, Sweetie,” River said, her voice like golden honey.  He obeyed of course, albeit slowly and straightening his bowtie; a redundant gesture since he had a feeling it would be coming off shortly, but it was habit.

 When he was close enough for her to reach, River hastily tugged him by the lapels of his tweed jacket closing the gap between them.  She kissed him hungrily, sucking in his bottom lip between hers and catching it between her teeth, nipping at it slightly before releasing it.  The gesture always drove him wild and he growled with desire which made her give a throaty chuckle.  She stayed leaning on the console and he nestled himself to stand between her legs.  He wove his fingers through her luxurious curls with one hand and the other at her back pressing her torso flush with his.  He could feel the swell of her breasts and wished there wasn’t clothing separating them. 

 River must have had a similar idea for she started to push his jacket down off of his shoulders and he extricated himself to pull it off the rest of the way and tossed it to land on the railing.  She pushed at his chest to get him to move backwards and he allowed her to back him up until he felt the jump-seat at the back of his legs.  She pushed him to sit down and then straddled him when he did.  She kissed him, tongue thrusting and dancing with his own.  She left his mouth to kiss elsewhere.  She had her hand in his hair and used it to pull his head back.  She kissed his chin, the tender flesh just under his chin, his throat, his adam’s apple.  She released his hair to undo his tie leaving it to dangle from the collar of his shirt then she pulled down his braces and unbuttoned his shirt.  She went back to kissing her way down starting where she left off on his neck and moved down to his clavicle.  She ran her fingers lightly down his chest, his stomach, his sides and he couldn’t help it, he laughed because it tickled.

 “A bit ticklish are we, Sweetie?” she laughed.

 “Just a bit,” he told her then squirmed and laughed louder when she tickled him on purpose.  “Oi, turnabout is fair play, wife,” he announced just before getting her behind the knee.  His intention was only to tickle her in a place he knew she was ticklish, which he accomplished and she laughed and squirmed, but because of the way she was sitting her squirming had an interesting affect.  He knew she felt it and when his tickle attack ended her laughter turned low and throaty.

 River carefully stood up then took hold of one end of his bowtie still hanging loose around his neck.  She pulled it very slowly with her as she took a step backward.  He watched the tie slip away then grasped the other end just as it left his shirt.  He held onto it as she walked on so that his bowtie was like a rope between them, a leash really.  He had a feeling River enjoyed the likeness.

 River led them down the TARDIS’ corridor that led to the Doctor’s bedroom, their bedroom.  The Doctor used his long legs to close the gap between them and hugged River from behind even as they walked on.  It wasn’t the most coordinated thing to do and they tripped up a bit; she turned around and kissed him when they reached the door to the bedroom and they stumbled their way in.  She pulled his shirt off and flung it to the floor kissing her way down his chest again, this time taking one of his nipples in her mouth.  He could feel her grin against his skin and he looked down at her just before she bit playfully then dashed away to jump up onto the bed.

 River knelt on the mattress and pulled her tank top up and off.  She gave the Doctor a teasing grin.  He looked admiringly at her full breasts now clothed only in the bra she wore, nipples visible through the sheer fabric.  He stalked his way around to the side of the bed slowly.  He could see River’s smile slide away slowly to be replace by a look of pure desire as he looked over every inch of her and she looked at him without touching.

 The Doctor set his sonic on the bedside nightstand and unclipped his loose hanging braces and dropped them to the floor in a blasé fashion, as if he had all the time in the universe.  The muscles of his lean torso were flexed, ripples of muscles were creating a washboard of his abdomen.  She reached out to run her fingers along them but this time he didn’t giggle, no, this time he took a step closer to the bed and hooked a finger under her chin.  He guided her with that finger to rise up from sitting on her haunches to a kneeling position.  He bent down and kissed her.  She used the opportunity to unfasten his trousers and carefully push them down to puddle around his feet.  He used his toes to kick off his shoes and the trousers, leaving him in only his socks and Y fronts.  He was both sexy and adorable at the same time.  She could see his obvious sexual arousal bulging in his underwear.  She ran the flat of her palm along the ridge of him through the cloth.  She felt it twitch, heard his intake of breath.  She looked back up at him and saw his half-lidded gaze was fixed on her, his eyes deepened to the most vivid shade of green.

 River backed up on the bed laying down on her back and the Doctor joined her on the mattress.  He grabbed the waistband of her tight leggings and she lifted her hips to help as he slid them down, taking her panties with them.  She divested him of his Y fronts and enjoyed the feel of his bum in her hands.  He kissed the swell of her breasts above the fabric of her bra while fumbling with the clasp behind her back.  He reached out blindly for a second or two to the nightstand then the familiar sound of his sonic had the bra clasp undone.  

 “My, my, Doctor, I didn’t know you invented it to do that!” she teased.

 “Yeah, well, it’s just an added bonus,” the Doctor said with a boyish grin and an endearing blush and he placed the sonic screwdriver back on the nightstand.  He slipped the straps of River’s bra down and he kissed the path they took from her shoulders down her arms.  He turned his attention back to her breasts, bringing her nipples to taught peaks.  He trailed kisses from the valley of her breasts down her abdomen.  Her fingers entangled in his hair brought him back up for a mouth on mouth kiss.

 They were always good at the kissing.  Even when it was new to him and he seemed awkward and flailing and gangly, his lips still did what they should and did so very well.  Now it was lips and tongues and sighs of delight and moans of desire.  The motion of his tongue mimicked the thrusting of what was yet to come.

 Impatient, River hooked her knee on the Doctor’s slim hip and he found his place between her legs.  He teased her, rubbing the head of his penis at her opening to her clitoris and back.  She was already slick with want.  He pressed into her until only the head of his shaft was in her.  He looked into her eyes as he held himself there until she bucked her hips up with impatience trying to draw him in.  He rocked in a little further, pulled back, then pushed forward again, further still, repeating the motion until he was buried within her to the hilt, a skill learned with practice, letting her walls adjust to his length. It was an attribute not to be scoffed at and took some getting used to of his own after regenerating into this body.  

 They struck up a familiar rhythm, an action that was as old as time.  They found joy and pleasure and ecstasy.  He revelled in the feel of her flesh on his, the warmth and the love and the feeling of being in the most exquisite place known to the carnal man.  He had her arching her back in pleasure with the grind of his hips with each thrust and she rose up to meet him.  She convulsed around him and he followed her into beautiful oblivion soon after.

 Afterward they were laying in bed.  River had her head on the Doctor’s chest listening to her husband’s double heartbeat while he toyed with her curls.  He loved how when you pulled on them they sprang back, little wondrous golden coils.

 “Are you enjoying doing that?” River asked him, trying to sound annoyed but she was happily sated and so it came out less annoyed and more curious.

 “Yes, actually, I am.  I love your hair, I find it fascinating.”

 “Fascinating?” now she was able to trump up a little bit of annoyance into her voice.

 “Mmm,” he hadn’t caught her tone.

 “Well, I guess that’s…something,” she said on a sigh knowing the Doctor would never understand his folly so why try explaining.

 “River?”

 “Hmm?”

 “You hungry?”

 “A little.  You want to go get those chips?”

 He smiled in answer and she lifted her head so she could see his face.  He looked so smug and self-assured lying there with that smile she couldn’t resist; in a flurry she was sitting on top of him pinning his wrists and body to the bed.

 “Oi!  I thought we were going for chips?”

 “We will when you get up from the bed,” she teased then kissed him.

 “River,” he spoke her name in that warning tone he used when she was being a bad girl.  Instead of waiting for her to relinquish him he chose to use his strength to flip the both of them.  They rolled over but his long legs got caught in the bed linens and they tangled up and continued rolling right to the floor, landing in a laughing heap. 

 After a long bout of laughter they disentangled themselves, got dressed and went out in search of the place they knew had the best chips.

 

  _Laughing like children, living like lovers_

_And I guess that’s why they call it the blues…_

 The TARDIS watched as the two walked away hand in hand, laughing gleefully.  There wasn’t any ulterior reason to bring them here, there wasn’t some danger or crises to be averted, no one in dire need of the Doctor’s help.  She had brought them here because she knew they needed it.  Just time to spend together.  She knew what ordeals were to come for her thief and her child.  She wanted to give them this small gift of time just being together, to be happy, because she knew it couldn’t last.

 

  _Laughing like children, living like lovers_

_And I guess that’s why they call it the blues…_

 The TARDIS loved it when they were both together, her thief and her child.  Things were brighter.  Her thief was happier, her child knew all her controls, their laughter rang through her hallways.  They went on such great adventures.

 When they were apart things were so gloomy.  Her thief missed her child and so did she.  She loved Water, remembered asking for her in her last moments of the time when she talked with her thief.

 Let them have this, she thought, let them laugh and love for there were trials ahead.  The TARDIS thought of those things to come and she hummed low and soft, rather mournfully.  Let them be happy now, they’ll be sad later.  The TARDIS remained where she was parked and waited for them to return, for once hoping they’d take their time, as the sunlight shined on her outside, lighting the wood painted in the hue of the bluest blue ever.

 

  _And I guess that’s why they call it the blues._

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
